Ralph Joseph Michaels (May 3, 1902 in

Etna, Pennsylvania Etna is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, located across the Allegheny River from Pittsburgh. The population was 3,437 at the 2020 census. It is a suburb in the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. Etna was named after the ...

, United States – August 5, 1988 in

Monroeville, Pennsylvania Monroeville is a Home rule municipality (Pennsylvania), home rule municipality in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is a suburb with mixed residential and commercial developments located about east of Pittsburgh. As of the 202 ...

) was an infielder who played for the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

from 1924 to 1926. He also played in the minor leagues in 1922 and 1923 and from 1926 to 1937. Michaels made his major league debut on April 16, 1924. In eight games with the Cubs that season, he hit .364 with two RBI. In 1923, he played in 22 games for the Cubs, collecting 14 hits in 50 at-bats for a .280 batting average. He appeared in two games in 1926, though he did not have an at-bat - though he still managed to score a run. He played his final game on April 30 of that year, finishing his career with a .295 batting average in 32 games. As a minor leaguer, Michaels hit .276 with 1,134 hits in 4,110 at-bats. Not a power hitter, he hit only 15 home runs in his career, along with 160 doubles and 41 triples. Perhaps his best season offensively was his very first - in 1922 with the Cedar Rapids Bunnies, Michaels hit .301 with 30 doubles in 129 games. He did not impress in the field that season however, as he committed 53 errors.BR Minors
/ref> He also managed the

Waterloo Hawks The Waterloo Hawks were a National Basketball League and National Basketball Association team based in Waterloo, Iowa. The Hawks remain the only sports franchise ever based in Iowa from any of the current Big Four Leagues. They are not affili ...

for part of the 1936 season. Following his death, he was interred at St. Mary Church Cemetery in

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Michaels, Ralph 1902 births 1988 deaths Chicago Cubs players People from Etna, Pennsylvania Baseball players from Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Nashville Vols players 20th-century American sportsmen